UG wins subsidies to make real estate more sustainable

At the UG, we have the task of making our real estate considerably more sustainable. This stems from legal obligations and our own sustainability ambitions. For example, we need to reduce our energy consumption by 50% by 2050, and as UG we want to be CO2 neutral by 2035. A huge task, then. We have to get to work.

But, increasing sustainability costs money. That is why our Real Estate Organization has applied for DUMAVA subsidies for as many as 14 sustainability projects. We are happy to announce that all our applications have been approved, and we have secured a subsidy amount of no less than € 2.47 million!

By implementing these projects, we are expected to save as much as 840,000 kg of CO2! That is comparable to flying from Amsterdam to New York approximately 456 times.

What are DUMAVA subsidies?

DUMAVA (Sustainable Social Real Estate, Duurzaam Maatschappelijk Vastgoed in Dutch) is a subsidy scheme that supports social real estate owners in making their buildings more sustainable. The scheme helps to reduce energy costs and improve the energy performance of our real estate by offering subsidies for sustainability measures such as insulation, HR++ glass and heat pumps. Depending on the project, the subsidy covers 20% to 30% of the costs.

What does this mean for the UG?

We are in a difficult period. On the one hand, we have to make substantial savings and, on the other, we have a sustainability task that requires a lot of investment. 

When maintaining our buildings, such as renovations and alterations, we seize these ‘natural moments’ to make our buildings more sustainable. This year, we are also looking at ongoing projects with a sustainability task, such as the renovation of Bloemsingel 1 and the connection of buildings to the Warmtestad network. For some projects, in consultation, we were able to add additional sustainability measures. In this way, we make optimal use of natural moments, save costs and speed up our sustainability efforts. 

Fortunately, many sustainability measures pay for themselves in a relatively short period of time, because they ensure that we use less energy and thus save on energy bills.

The happy news was celebrated with a nice piece of cake!